Proud
by mon-petit-loup
Summary: Neville goes to visit his parents in St. Mungo's after the Battle of Hogwarts. "One-shot".


**I had an idea recently that I wanted to write this. It's Neville visiting his parents in St. Mungo's after the Battle of Hogwarts. I hope you enjoy it!**

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He was rather unlike other people, in behaviour and in attitude. Unlike the throngs of witches and wizards that bustled and bundled their way through the corridors of St. Mungo's, all in varying levels of panic, he navigated his way through the long corridors in an almost absent-minded manner; in fact the only reason he paid any attention to his surroundings was to avoid the various Healers rushing to and from different wards. The Battle of Hogwarts had occurred only yesterday, and the place was heaving. Had it been empty (an unlikely occurrence, as he knew), he reckoned that he would simply be able to shut his eyes and navigate his way to his destination, simply by counting his steps and turning left, then right, then right, then left, and so on.

As Neville Longbottom finally arrived at the permanent ward, he stopped briefly, pulling uncomfortably at the hem of his jumper and moving his hair from his face. Walking slowly past the lines of beds, careful not to startle any of the more fragile patients, he shuffled down until he reached the two beds in which Frank and Alice Longbottom resided, completely oblivious to the conclusive events of yesterday. Neville smiled as he pulled up a chair and sat between the two beds. Although his father was asleep, Alice's delicate frame was hunched into the chair beside her own bed. She was humming a tune to herself, the one Neville had heard her hum many times, wrapped in her own serene little world.

"Hi, mum." he murmured, smiling at the aged woman who was still oblivious to his presence. Unfazed, he told her all that had occurred, all about the battle and the damage sustained to Hogwarts. But he also told her of the fallen heroes who had sacrificed so much, and Voldemort's subsequent defeat, and how the celebrations that followed lasted all the night, with fireworks and food and music.

Midway through his retelling, Frank awoke, and stared vacantly but attentively at the son he had forgotten, as though the words and Neville's voice were of great interest to him. "You would have loved it there." he told them. "Although we'll miss everyone who died - all of them - it's over. It's finally over. You are safe." Simultaneously, he took his father's hand in his left and his mother's hand in his right, and smiled in turn at the two of them. A wave of mind-numbing relief washed over him, and the tear that had clung desperately to the corner of his eye began to snake its way down his cheek.

"They will be proud of you, you know." Neville looked up to see one of the Healers standing at the foot of his father's bed, holding a clipboard and smiling at him. "I heard you killed that hideous snake Nagini with the sword of Gryffindor. You helped bring Voldemort down, and even if they can't show you now how proud they are, then know that they've got to be one of the proudest pairs of parents on Earth." With that, she turned and made her way back up the ward.

Neville felt a squeeze, and looked down sharply at his left hand. The thin fingers of his father's hand were wrapped tightly around his son's. Neville looked up into Frank's face. His father's eyes were set on his, and then something happened that would stay with the boy forever.

"Proud."

He had almost missed it, but his father's cracked lips had moved, and almost as soon as he had uttered the word, Frank Longbottom looked away and the vacant stare had returned, his hand once again limp in his son's.

And as Neville walked away from St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, he left with a smile on his face, one of Alice's _Drooble's Best Blowing Gum_ wrappers in his hand, and the assurance and knowledge that his parents felt the same way about him as he did about them.

Proud.

**Thankyou for reading this, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! :-)**


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